What Does the Future of the Workplace Look Like?

With the rapid advancement of technology in the past few years, the workplace has seen many changes. More employees are able to work remotely, AI communications are part of everyday life and with all of this technology, people are actively seeking out human connections. In 2019, you will notice even more of this in the workplace.

Remote Working

As we enter 2019, expect to see even more people working remotely. Businesses are realizing the many benefits of allowing their employees to work remotely. Employees report feeling more flexible, more comfortable and closer to their family when able to work remotely. There are also benefits for the environment and even lower food costs for the employee as they are typically working out of their home.

As far as businesses, the benefits are plenty as well. According to Forbes, remote working is low-hanging fruit for many organizations that can quickly shed the high cost of office space. Watch for more and more businesses to begin to implement remote working in the coming year.

Interacting With Artificial Intelligence

Throughout 2018 and even earlier, employees have been interacting with artificial intelligence on a daily basis, both personally and professionally. Many of the alerts you recieve on your phone are from AI, your Netflix feed and more. But as we move in 2019, artificial intelligence will become an even larger aspect of day to day life in the office. Businesses will begin determining where they can use AI to benefit the company as a whole. They can choose from robotic process automation, which supports basic and repetitive human tasks; cognitive automation, which supports a higher level of mental work than RPA; or social robotics, which is designed to interact with humans.

Meaningful Human Connections

With the onslaught of technology, more and more employees report feeling lonely as they work remotely or in the office. People are sending virtual messages rather than having face to face conversations. Due to the nature of the workplace in 2019, people will need to make an effort to seek out meaningful connections, both in and out of the office. This may be through work-sponsored events or simply meeting a friend for dinner. Whatever the case, look for people to be more intentional about making human connections in 2019.

Technology has made an impact worldwide. One of the places where people note the most changes is in the workplace. In 2019, look for the flexibility to work from home, more AI communication and more people actively seeking out human connections.

James B. Rutland is the CEO and founder of MMR Group, the United States' largest privately owned electric and instrumentation business. Rutland received a Bachelor of Science in Construction Technology and Engineering from Louisiana State University in 1972 and founded MMR in 1991.